APRIL 18, 1959

NEW YORK—The resignation of Secretary of State John Foster Dulles came as a shock to many this week, and I am sure the entire nation regrets that illness has forced him to retire.

If will power alone could have controlled the cancer, I am sure Mr. Dulles would have conquered the dread disease. As it was, he remained at his work longer than anyone else in similar circumstances would have found possible.

All of us are deeply sympathetic with Mr. Dulles in his present suffering. I am sure, however, that he is glad to have as able a person as Christian A. Herter to represent this country at the meeting of Western foreign ministers in Paris.

Mr. Dulles, of course, knows better the people who will be at this meeting, but he can impart to Mr. Herter much of his knowledge so that Mr. Dulles will have a feeling of satisfaction and confidence in our representation.

I read with regret the other day of the death of Pierpont B. Noyes of the Oneida Community. He was an interesting man, a son of John Humphrey Noyes, who founded and led "The Perfectionists," a group that experimented in communal living.

This movement, which began in the 1830s, was one of the many social experiments that have been conducted at different times. It was widely criticized, but it must be said that its founders held deep convictions. Their ideals may have varied from those of their contemporaries, but they certainly were ideals.

I have stood with descendants of the movement's founders in a meeting room and realized how difficult it must have been for those who analyzed their own faults in front of a severe and high-minded audience.

Ideas of "The Perfectionists" about the family and the rearing of children certainly produced some remarkable people, even though the ideas eventually failed to become accepted and the community was broken up and disorganized.

I was glad to see that the New York Teachers Guild called off its scheduled strike this week and reported for work as usual. This gave the city's Board of Estimate an opportunity to work out a solution, and it gave the teachers themselves a chance to consider their demands carefully.

There is no question in my mind that our teachers are underpaid, and budget cuts should not be made affecting essential services such as teaching.

The field of teaching and other certain types of work certainly are in need of a revision of thinking by the public to provide for sufficient compensation for people in these jobs.